The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1887-01-13
coMIcAL PARROTS.
some Good stories About Polly-Tbe
Clever Bird Makes Plenty of
Mischief.


Mischief.
While q newly-married couple were
away on their honeymoon, they left their
house in charge of servants On their rer
turn their parrot repeated several times,
Let's have another bottle there's no one
here to know" and then followed the APP
proprate "plop, plop' and gurgle, How
the servants must have loved this clever
bird This story is quite true. So is the
following A Yorkshire gentleman had
fever about Christmas time, and his par
rot was removed from the dining-room to
the kitchen, where Its voice was less like
ly to disturb its master. 1t remained
there for several weeks. during which 1t
stole the raisins intended for a plum-pud-
ding. The cook, in anger, threw some
hot grease at it, and scalded its head.
When the gentleman got better the bird
was carried back to the dining-room. Its
master approached with newly-shaved
head; whereupon the parrot turned one
eye upon him, and slowly said, " You
bald-headed ruffian! So you stole the
cooks plums, did you I"
While the late Dean Stanley wasa canon
~ CoutCE kChVichAhh WHo uoA oCSh
invited to breakfast with him found all
servants assembled in the garden and
gazing up at a lxburnum In which their
masters parrot was at large. At that
moment out came the master. The par
rot looked down at him and said. in slow
but distinct voice-exactly like the late
dean's-"Let us not pray" The bird
was eventually captured by the aid of .
fishinR-rod
A grey parrot was stationed in a nurs.
cry, where his greatest delight was to see
the baby bathed. Thschild being attacked
by some infantile complaint, the parrot
was removed to the kitchen. There, after
time. he set up a terrible cry-"The
baby the dear babyl'' All the family
rushed down to find the parrot. In . state
Of the widest excitement, watching the
roasting of A-suckin0 pig.
DIR. Karl Russ. in his recently published
work, "The Speaking Parrots" tells Of II
grey, which was teased by a fat major,
whom 1t knew we'll, to climb . stick.
Up on the stick. Polly-up on the stick :"
cried the officer. The parrot suddenly
burst ,nte loud laugh. and said. Up
Will yON Oh VIC bsiSh, ihuJOA.
Everybody has heard of the parrot OF
Henry ". which fell into the Thames
from window in the palace at Westmin-
ster, and called out "A crown for boat"
The waterman who rescued it claimed q
crown accordingly ; and the parrot, on be-
ing asked what he should be paid, is
stated to have replied, "Give the knave a
groat."
DIR. Russ tells another curious story Of
a grey which taught a young Amazon
(parrot) to talk. When the pupil did not
learn his words correctly, the grey would
say, "Blockhead !" and turn contemp-
Luously away. Eventually the grey and
the Amazon were able to converse The
former would say, Have you any
money :" to which the latter would reply
in doleful voice, No" Rosa (the grey
would then give the name of the emperor,
and Coco (the Amazon) would calculate,
Long life to him.
One grey is related to have mourned
for his mistress when she died. 1t was
difficult to induce him to take = Often,
too, he would reawaken - the
mourners bv a. <
the lady, then -
A parrot has been known :. IN con
iinement for twenty years without learn
ing a single word, though it afterwards
became an accomplished talker More
over no two birds are exactly alike in tem
perament. One learns with difficulty. but
never forgets: another picks up every
thing he hears, but remembers nothing
for more than few days. Some few
learn readily, and retain what they have
learnt One bird, mentioned by DIR. Russ,
tt gan to talk the very day that it arrived,
ana when it saw breakfast, said Bake
cakes" and "Give some to the parrot !"
while another, also mentioned by him,
could not utter its own name until it had
DeeI. eight months with its owner, when
il began to learn something every day.
Ultimately it was taught to repeat verses,
and if it made mistake would say an
grily. You are no good" but If it got
through its task without an error, il
would praise itself.
DR.. Greene, who has lately publishe II
book called Parrots in Captivity" tells
of gray which goes through long per
formance in which speaking plays quite =,
secondary part but when it is shut up in
a coal box, it initiates postman's knock,
and when you say, who's there.' dis
tinctly replies. Open the door for Polly"
And, combating Cuviers opinion that
"these initiative and mechanical quail
ties are not to be attributed to superior
reason or sagacity," DR.. Greene in
stances the case of a cockatoo which was
never known to ask for potatoes except
when dinner was on the table, nor to say,
"Oh, you're a beauty" but to II child.
Slightly Sarcastic.
The Lyon Medical says that Professor
Malgaigne is much dreaded by students
on account of his irony at examinations.
One day he was discussing some obscure
points in students thesis, and the can
didate replied almost at random Now,
sir, exclaimed the irate examiner, "can
you tell me what to create means 20
= Create" stammered the youth; lit
means to make something out of nothing u
That's good, sir" said Malgaigne; 1--WE
will now make You doctor"